A Sweet Illusion
by Kalafina94
Summary: She was an enigma. A strange girl who kept her secrets close and her past even closer. He knew only two things from watching her from his spot in the middle of the classroom: she was a Hunter first and foremost, and he was desperately curious to know about her past. Why, he didn't know. He just did.
1. Chapter 1

**So I was rewatching the Vampire Knight series and I suddenly found Akatsuki extremely attractive. I'm not sure why, but he's suddenly tied with Shiki and I don't know what to think about it. And thus, this lovely new story was created. Don't ask why. It just was. I obviously have a problem...**

**Enjoy. :)**

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_"Who are you to judge the life I live? I am not perfect and I don't have to be! Before you start pointing fingers, make sure your hands are clean." -Bob Marley_

**Day One: **Orders Are Orders

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"This is such a mistake," I growled at Yagari from my seat across from him in the—completely unnecessary—limo we were currently riding in. The car was too extravagant and attention-grabbing and while I mentally enjoyed the plush black seats and provided ice water, it was just too much for me to ever get used to.

I still didn't understand why Yagari insisted on such a thing. If I had a car of my own, I would've left the man to his fancy car and I'd be riding in comfort to our current destination, even if I am reluctant to do so. Both sides win. But no. It was either this or walk. Yagari would've made sure I'd never rent a car for the next decade with the amount of connections he had and seeing as how far our destination was, I ultimately chose the limo after having a five-minute staring contest with Yagari, which I obviously lost.

_Stupid man..._

Said stupid man pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and promptly lit one right there in the car. My nose scrunched up at the strong smell of tobacco and I waved away a puff of smoke the insufferable man blew right into my face. I made sure he heard my mumbled obscenities and rolled my window down slightly to get rid of the smell. He pretended not to hear the creative names I was giving him, inhaling on his cancer stick and exhaling a few seconds later.

"It's not my orders you're following, brat," Yagari said. "You do as the President orders whether you like it or not. It's as simple as counting."

"Stop calling me that," I snapped in a mock angry tone. Huffing, I crossed my arms and slouched in my seat. "Why couldn't he have chosen someone else? Surely Anna or Imura are more qualified for this job than I am since they have more years of service than my pitiful five years."

"Don't call me Surely," Yagari said half-heartedly. I snorted at that. "Seniority doesn't mean squat in the Hunter's Association. You do what you're ordered regardless of how hard the job is."

In all honesty, the job didn't bother me. It was just another mission assignment that was expected to be completed soon. Except it was here in Japan instead of Ireland. But it was the same concept. Just different countries. I was only reluctant in going because something about this job seemed suspicious to my mind.

Why would the President call in a transfer all the way from Ireland just to complete a Japanese assignment that could've been completed by one of the hundreds of Hunters under his command? It didn't make sense to me and the President keeping details from me wasn't giving me any hints as to why I was here.

_He's been acting weird lately. Not that the President's not weird to begin with if the few times I've talked to him face-to-face were any indicators, but when he all of a sudden contacted me out of the blue two months ago demanding that I come to Japan for a certain upcoming assignment, he had been behaving...in a non-normal fashion._

Sighing under my breath, I slouched even further into my seat, wrapping my coat around me to preserve what little warmth I could. That stupid man insisted that the cold air be on for the entire duration of the ride since it was close to hitting ninety-degrees outside and he didn't want to sweat unnecessarily during the ride. It was just my luck that I had to sit under the vent, too. That stupid man had to of planned this. He knew I didn't do well in cold conditions.

"Quit pouting," Yagari sighed. "It's unbecoming for a Hunter."

"I can't help that I'm miserable," I grumbled at him before sitting up properly. "Do you have any mission details? The President and my Captain left me in the dark before I left, so I don't know anything."

Yagari rolled his eyes, leaning over to flick his finished cigarette out my window. "I swear, your Captain is the stupidest man alive."

"You're not the one that had to work under him for the past two months," I retorted, glaring at the second cigarette he pulled out. "You're going to get Lung Cancer one day and you're gonna be sh-" I caught myself before I said the swear word and coughed into my hand to cover it. "You're gonna be outta luck when you can't smoke anymore."

"Nice catch," He said sarcastically. "And I won't get Lung Cancer anytime soon. I still have awhile before I need to start worrying." Clicking his lighter numerous times, it took him a little bit to realize that it was empty. He scowled around his cigarette, shoving the lighter into his pocket and searching for a new one.

I wordlessly pulled out the lighter I always carried on me and held it up to his mouth. He arched an eyebrow, but let me light it without complaint. "Where'd you get that? And since when do you smoke?"

"I don't smoke. It's one of my Dad's. I stole it from him once when I was little and never gave it back."

Yagari huffed, a plume of heavy smoke escaping his parted lips and blowing right into my face like before. Except this one caught me completely off guard. "I'm surprised you found a full lighter," He said around my coughing. "Your old man has a bigger addiction than I do."

"Damn it, Yagari," I wheezed, struggling to find a form of fresh air. "You know I'm allergic to smoke!"

"That's fifty cents." I threw two quarters at him angrily. He smugly dumped them in an almost full Moonshine jar before stuffing it back in his bag. "This swear jar has been quite effective on you, Akira. That's the first time I've heard you swear all week."

"I'm sorry I'm poor, Yagari," I snapped, finally being able to breath after practically sticking my head out the window to get some fresh air. I dully noted that we were close to reaching a town surrounded by trees before I pulled myself back into the car. "The mission details?"

"Oh, right. The President was getting suspicious of the amount of attacks in the town near Cross Academy and wanted us to look around and see what we can find." He pointed at me. "We'll be there awhile, so expect to get other assignments while we're here."

I groaned. "Lovely. Hunting Level E vampires while getting side-missions."

He rolled his eyes before he gave me a slow smirk. I didn't like it when he smirked like that. It never spelled good news for us. Well, more me than him. "We're gonna stop by and say hi to an old friend of mine, too, while we're here. Do you know Kaien Cross?"

I blinked before gaping in shock at Yagari. "You know _the _Kaien Cross?!"

Yagari laughed his deep laugh, thankfully taking his cigarette out of his mouth so he wouldn't spew smoke everywhere. It almost sounded like he was cackling, but that might've just been my imagination messing with me again. "That idiot and I go way back." His eyes glinted in a gleeful way. "You'll be surprised what he's become now."

"Is it that bad?"

"He was definitely something special when I last saw him four years ago. I can only imagine how much weirder he's gotten now that his brats are all grown up."

I hummed, looking out the window to see that we were now gliding through the town I had seen earlier. I noticed that it was very clean, from the white-washed buildings to the watered down cobblestone side-streets. It also seemed to be a very busy day. People were bustling around on the sidewalks, many dressed in professional suits and carrying briefcases. I noticed there were very few children meandering around.

"I didn't know Cross-san had kids," I said as I watched a woman wearing a white blouse and a long dress flow in and out of the crowds. Her face was covered by a white shawl, but it didn't stop long tendrils of brown hair to spill out and billow in front of her. She was too graceful to be human, I noted absently. A quick glance in Yagari's direction told me he hadn't noticed her. I decided not to mention her and turned in my seat to face him.

"He doesn't," Yagari denied. "I think he adopted them. One of them is my stupid apprentice."

I perked up at that. "Oh? So I might get to meet the infamous Kiryu Zero soon?"

During the two months that I had been here in Japan, I had spent almost all of my time hanging around Yagari and getting to know the man that is revered as the strongest Hunter in the whole Association. Eventually, the topic of his apprentice came up and I pestered the man to tell me about him for a whole week before he finally relented, calling me annoying and troublesome before showing me a picture of a silver-haired boy and giving me as little details as possible. It was infuriating, but it was better than nothing and I wasn't complaining. Out loud, at least.

I was curious about the silver-haired boy. Yagari had said he was only one year older than me, but he had been held back for some reason and is still a 2nd year student. And though it was _supposed _to be somewhat of a secret within this particular Hunter's Association, I knew about the Kiryu massacre after a bit of shameless snooping around on my part, but there was surprisingly not that much detail on the attack. Just that Zero had been the lone survivor and that his younger brother had gone missing before Hunters had arrived at the scene. But that was all I could get on the mysterious Kiryu boy. Yagari had said never to mention his name in any Association walls. It was almost taboo to say his name in front of any of the older and more experienced Hunters. I didn't know why and I was almost tempted to do it anyways to figure out why it was almost illegal to say one name, but Yagari had insisted and made me promise not to say anything.

Yagari smirked. "Possibly." He blew out a ring of smoke. "I haven't seen him in a little over four years. I guess I'll admit to you that I miss seeing his stupid face."

"I love how you make fun of your poor apprentice when he's not even here," I commented.

Yagari snorted. Between he and I, we had been doing that a lot lately..."That boy is anything but poor. He's like you."

Deciding to play along, I jokingly said while flipping my hair, "Good-looking? Gorgeous? Smart? I didn't know you were trying to flatter me and Kiryu-san, Yagari!"

His foot lashed out to kick my knee, his aim true and leaving me a hissing animal as I cradled my knee. It throbbed painfully and Yagari didn't seem to care about the damage he had done. "Don't be vain. You know what I meant."

Grumbling, I brought my knee up to my chest to cradle it. "So I'm pretty much going to meet a male version of myself? This ought to be interesting." Yagari laughed his cackling laugh again.

A gentle tapping behind my head caught my attention and I turned to see the driver's knuckles lightly tapping on the sliding glass that separated us from him. "We've arrived at the hotel you'll be staying at, sir and miss," He said once I had slid the glass away. Beaming, I immediately hopped out of the limo, temporarily ignoring my hurt knee and breathing in deeply. I exhaled heavily.

"I've missed this," I said cheekily as Yagari pulled our bags out from the truck. He set mine down beside me, then promptly hit me upside the head. He thanked the driver, who nodded his head to us both, promptly stepping back into the driver's seat once he saw that we were well off and drove away.

"Just grab your stuff and follow me, brat," Yagari said, holding the door open for me as I stalked past him with my stuff, scowling at the new bruise he had given me.

Heads turned at our entrance, but they didn't stare for long before they all went back to their business. They probably assumed it was just a father and daughter on vacation. Yagari and I did look similar. Except for our eyes. We had different eye colors and different builds if we're talking musculature, but those were only the main differences between us. Other than that, we might as well have been related. Shame that we weren't.

After receiving keys to our rooms, we both headed towards the elevator. Yagari didn't believe in the idea that male and female Hunters should be placed in the same rooms. That's how people end up having something they weren't prepared for. He flat out told me he refused to bunk with me anyway. I was apparently too annoying for him to handle. Yagari trusted me—to an extent—enough that I wouldn't pull anything funny by myself, so I was free to have a room to myself as long as I behaved. Yagari didn't believe me when I said I'd be good while he wasn't around, but still got me my own room anyway.

"Your room's right across from mine," He explained as he tossed me my key. Catching it one-handed, I inserted it into the lock and turned, opening the door. "If you need anything, I'm across the hall." That said, Yagari mimicked my movements and closed the door behind him, leaving me standing in the hall by myself.

Hefting my bag onto my shoulders, I closed the door behind me and looked around the room. I smiled at what I saw. It was a cozy-looking, dimly lit room with the same white-washed walls that seemed to make up all the buildings in this town and brown carpet that felt like cotton beneath my feet. I experimentally wiggled my toes and giggled at the ticklish sensation it caused.

Tossing my bag onto the all-white bed that sat in the corner of the room, I grabbed the curtains that had the same color as my hair and yanked them open. I winced at the bright light that beamed right into my eyes and rubbed my eyes to get rid of the stinging feeling. Turning away from the light, I plopped down on the bed, sighing in content and reaching over to the bedside table to turn off the lamp that had been on.

I was perfectly happy just laying here all day. It was comfortable and had a homely feeling to it that made my being so far away from home more bearable. Being here gives me the space I do so love. I could never be by myself back home. I'd always be crowded by my parents and my siblings. It was almost always suffocating to be around my happy-go-lucky family that didn't know the meaning of personal space.

I felt bad for thinking negatively about my family when I was miles upon miles away from them. They were my family, after all. They were just trying to look after me. Trying to keep me happy and keep my wants and needs in mind as much as possible. They just wanted what was best for me. Mom was playing the doting and fair mother perfectly and Dad had perfected his over-protective role by the time my younger sister was born. My older brother was a natural when it came to teasing and pranking me. And my little sister…she had the fake tears and wails down right from the get-go. What could I possibly hate about my family when they're so…_perfect?_

_Maybe it's just cause you can't stand the idea of perfection and just accepted this job to get away from all that perfection that surrounded you. _

I pushed myself into a sitting position, shaking my head at the thought. No. I didn't hate my family cause they were perfect. That'd be selfish of me to think such a thing. Slapping my cheeks sharply, I pursed my lips through the sting and stood, emptying my bag and grabbing a spare set of clothes. Maybe a shower would me some good.

_Hopefully it'll get rid of all this negative crap running through my head right now._

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I crouched down to the ground, fingers rubbing against the wet substance that Yagari had noticed with the help of a dim street lamp. Pulling back, my fingers were dyed red. I rubbed the blood off in a nearby patch of grass in repulsion. "This stuff is still fresh, Yagari," I commented as I stood back up and looked at the experienced Hunter. "What do we do?"

Yagari took off his signature brown cowboy-looking hat and ran a hand through his hair before replacing the hat back on his head. He was surprisingly not inhaling another cigarette for once, though from the perpetual frown on his face, I knew it wouldn't be long before he caved.

Night had fallen over the town. Without the brightness of the sun, we had to rely on the poor glow of the street lamps that littered the sidewalks. And without lights, it just created a tense atmosphere that had me tensing at anything and everything. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as a chilly wind blew by, causing a shiver to cascade down my spine uncomfortably. Why it was this cold in the middle of August was a mystery to me. It suddenly felt like Fall had come two months early.

I tugged my coat closer to my body with frozen fingers, watching Yagari examine the blood cleverly hidden in the crevice of an alley. There was apparently a Level E on the prowl and was causing waves upon waves of concern and fear for the citizens that lived in this area. And after sneaking into the Mayor's office—of which I'm exceedingly proud of since I didn't even get caught—and snooping through his latest files, there have been numerous reports of disappearances going on lately over the past few days. It made me angry that there have been no attempts to even find all of these people.

Though I highly doubted that they were still alive, anyway. But it was the thought that counted, at least.

"We need to find who it was that was attacked," He said, standing back up. "Chances are, the Level E had taken its food with it and is currently lurking around to find a suitable spot to continue feeding."

I pulled the assignment that had been sent to us from the Association a couple hours ago, unfolding the paper from the square shape I had made it. I mentally thought it retarded that we had already gotten another job when we just got here on top of finding the top honcho that we knew to be here, but I wasn't going to verbally complain in front of Yagari. That'd only get me another slap to the head that I really didn't want.

"There really isn't much to go by from what HQ gave us on this particular Level E," I said disappointedly as I scanned the paper that detailed our target. "No habits, no favorite spots, no anything." I angrily crumpled the paper into a ball and shoved it back into my pocket. "That was the biggest waste of information I've seen in my entire life."

"Don't complain," Yagari snapped, glaring at me. "We're given what we're given. HQ must have thought we could use the information that they had on this man to our advantage."

"Why would I need to know this man is a widow, has no children, and has no eye-capturing features to make him easily recognizable?"

"They obviously thought they had the need to give us something about our target. It's better than nothing in my opinion." He stalked off across the street without bothering to look for any oncoming cars. It was nearing close to midnight now and there weren't many stragglers wandering the streets. Maybe the occasional drunk, but they quickly disappeared from view, making a great deal of noise as they did so.

I hurried to follow after Yagari, pausing behind him when he suddenly stopped in the middle of the street. He turned his head left and right, apparently searching for something. He seemed to find what he was looking for because he nodded his head and glanced at me over his shoulder. "We're gonna split up from here."

"Did you remember any of the spots that the Level E's like to frequent?" I could understand why the man wanted to get away from me—I'll freely admit that I was too fidgety for any normal person to handle after a set amount of time—but I couldn't help but feel offended that he was so quick to send me off.

He slapped me upside the head. "Idiot. I haven't been here in over four years. I don't know what goes on in this town. We'll just have to do this the old-fashioned way and walk around. We'll come across him eventually."

I glared at him before accepting the order. "I'll check the left side of town. You got the right?" He nodded. "Do you want me to check in periodically?"

"Only if you find anything of importance regarding the Level E." Digging in his pocket, he pulled out the brand new headpieces the Association had sent us a couple hours ago. He tossed one to me before he placed the other one around his neck, placing the earbud in his ear and messing with the communicator around his neck before he found the right station. Copying him, I let him mess with my own communicator to his satisfaction before stepping back. "Meet back here in a couple hours. You got that, brat? _A couple hours. _Not a day or two later. A couple hours."

I waved his concern away with a flourish of my wrist, snorting. "Alright, alright. I'll meet you back here in a couple hours. I won't leave the town's premises. Promise."

I had an awful habit of leaving behind teammates whenever it came to these types of missions. I would be assigned a section of the place we were investigating, get caught up in whatever it is that I was looking for, and lo and behold, some odd amount of days had passed since I first started. I couldn't help my curious nature. I secretly blame my grandfather for this side of me, but he doesn't need to know that. He'd go into one of his infamous rampages. And nobody really needs to deal with something like that anymore.

It was just my luck that Yagari learned about it, too. The man really did his research. He knows practically everything about me just from reading my profile. I was seriously creeped out how the man knew what I liked and disliked right off the bat when we were first introduced. I had just about turned around to get back on the plane back home. He also had the misfortune of learning about this side of me on a mission gone wrong a week after I first arrived. He cuffed me good after that particular stunt. Hence where the head-slapping came from.

Too bad for me, I was kept on a tight leash after that mission and was confined to the Association's Headquarters for a while. I even had bodyguards watching me during that period of time. That stupid President had spies all over the place, watching me like hawks and sending unwanted shivers down my spine at their dead stares. Yagari, at least, was more understanding after I had reluctantly apologized for running off, but he wasn't that much different. He never let me out of his sights again whenever we went somewhere outside of Headquarters and he always gave me a curfew that he demanded that I always follow. It was annoying, but it was better than having people always following me and tracking my every footstep.

Yagari glared at my cheek. "I mean it, brat. So much as a second late and I'll make sure you suffer during your stay here."

I didn't have a shadow of doubt in my mind that he could actually pull that threat off. And knowing the stubborn idiot, he'd make me do all of his paperwork just for the heck of it. "Yea, yea. I'll be back on time." I gave him a cheeky grin. "If there's one thing I hate more than boredom, it's paperwork."

He rolled his eyes in a surprising display of immaturity and turned on his heel, walking in the opposite direction. I didn't miss the way his hand inched into his pocket and pulled out another one of those cancer sticks that he so loved.

Cracking my fingers and arching my back until it cracked pleasantly, I turned down an alley that looked suspicious enough and set out to find the Level E that was terrorizing the town. At the disgusting smell of decomposing garbage that was rotting away in the trash cans that littered the alley, I decided that this town wasn't as nice as I thought it was. With a smell like this, it'll be a big pain in the ass to track a vampire's scent in this town.

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He didn't know how it happened. It had just shown up right out of the blue and he was too slow to stop it. Still too new to this new life and immense strength and intense thirst that he had stupidly lowered his guard as he was about to finish off the prey he had captured for the night.

She was a tiny thing, that's for sure. All doll-like features and dainty everything. But she was still an adult. He didn't have it in him to kidnap children just to sate his thirst. It left a vile taste in his mouth. He was berated by the older, more experienced predators of the night for being so weak and soft-hearted and _sympathetic_, but he still had enough sense left to know that it made him uncomfortable and he vowed he wouldn't touch a child even if his throat felt like it had suddenly turned into a hot desert.

He hissed in pain as an intense fire burned from his hip where a bullet had bit into his skin and sent him flying backwards, biting his lip to hold in a shout when the sudden wound in his side flared abruptly. His food lay sprawled on the ground some feet away, pretty brown hair covering her face from view, but giving him an excellent view of the pale, slender neck that bore bleeding puncture wounds. He almost forgot his pain as saliva pooled in his mouth at the thought of blood being so close by and taunting him with that sweet, _sweet _smell that pleasantly reminded him of the time where he ate nothing but sweets as a child.

But then the very ground beside him was upturned by a stray bullet meant to capture his attention and he was reminded of the danger that he was suddenly in.

"What the...?" A light voice whispered in obvious confusion. A stray breeze blew the stranger's scent in his direction and he inhaled a huge whiff of the person's scent. His eyes glowed ruby-red at the intoxicating smell and he bared his fangs hungrily at the short figure that stood at the entrance of the abandoned building he had claimed as his own when he first changed. "You're not even a full Level E yet."

Footsteps had him snapping out of his trance and his eyes narrowed into a glare when the figure was revealed to be a woman. No. Not a woman. She looked too young. She kneeled next to the woman on the ground and moved her hair out of the way, fingertips gently pressing against the woman's throat and feeling for a pulse. He oddly liked the look of surprise on her face when she did find one.

"Now I know you're definitely not a Level E," She said, giving the man a thoughtful glance and scowling at the same time. A click and a gun was suddenly thrust into his face. He recoiled and snarled at the girl's audacity. How dare she point a gun at him! She turned her head away from him. "You're too cooperative to be one of them."

He could vaguely remember that term. That term that sounded so degrading to his ears whenever someone other than him said it. But where had he heard? Perhaps...when he was being turned? Yes...yes, that had to be right. He remembered a voice, a high, melodic, feminine voice, using that term constantly. Complaining about how the newly transformed were losing their sanity too fast. Useless. They were becoming useless to her.

"Tell me something," She demanded in a daring voice, breaking his train of thought. "Who is your creator?" Well, that topic was quick to be thrown out the window.

His lips curled into a sneer. "Long gone."

His wound was healing slow, he duly noted. Too slow. Enchanted silver bullets? Well, that was a big pain in the ass. He'd be stuck here for double the time until he was able to move more agilely. He hoped that he could distract the girl long enough to the point where his wound was at least closed and he could high-tail it out of there with his food in his arms.

"You mean they're dead?"

"I didn't say that, stupid girl."

A flash of silver and the gun clonked him upside the head. His face slapped against the ground, a sharp crack from his nose telling him that it was broken. "Answer me," She snarled.

He growled at her as blood flowed from his broken nose. He wished he could say some of the more colorful swear words that he knew, but the barrel of her gun pressed against his forehead more insistently, a clear reminder of what his current position was. He silenced the snarl that rose in his throat and settled for glaring. "They're long gone. They've abandoned us."

"Who's they?"

He was about to answer her with a snarky answer, but he stopped. He...couldn't remember. The faces were there. Right at the forefront of his mind. He could easily describe who it was that had turned him. But...the names. The names completely evaded him. They settled on the tip of his tongue, but he found that he couldn't say them without choking up. Frustrated, he furrowed his eyebrows, struggling to remember before giving up some seconds later. "I don't remember."

Her mouth opened, but she didn't get a chance to say anything else. A sudden _BANG! _was heard and he recoiled in shock before slowly looking down. An intricate, glowing green sign pulsated over his chest from where a bullet had pierced through his chest. He heard the girl shout indignantly to someone before his body jumped and burned with fire and then—

Nothing.

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_Orders are orders. And they're expected to be followed, Akira._

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**Yea...so, as you can see, I grew bored. Again. I'm terribly sorry...**

**-KalafinaJ**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi again! That first chapter was seriously fun to write. I hope the future chapters are as fun as that one! *Grins happily* Akira is such a smartass. I enjoy writing her and Yagari's conversations. **

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_"You don't get to do that. Come into somebody's life, make them care, and then just check out. You can't just do that to someone." -Dale Horvath_

**Day One (Night): **Orders are Orders

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"Yagari, you jerk! Let me out of here!"

Damn, that girl really had a mouth on her. Not that he hadn't known that already since he spent quite a few months watching her troublesome ass. Yagari speculated that she'd been banging on that door for the past half hour. He was still waiting for other residents or even the manager to come up and ask him what was going on. Yagari couldn't really blame the kid for her anger, though. He wouldn't have reacted so nicely if he had been the one thrown into a hotel bathroom and had the door locked from the outside, either.

"Open this door! You can't keep me in here forever!"

He could definitely try. Yagari was sorely tempted to make a smartass comment just to make the younger Hunter more irritated than she already was. Maybe she'd start spewing all those curse words that she knew. He knew he could use all the extra quarters she'd owe him to buy himself a new pack of cigarettes. He was beginning to run out again after going through half of the pack today. An image of a broken door and the girl currently throwing the temper tantrum of the century ran through his mind. He sighed dejectedly, slouching in his seat. He wasn't too keen on paying for any damages she'd cause in her rage, so he kept silent and tuned the furious teenager out.

He brought his burning cigarette to his lips, inhaling slowly and exhaling after holding the smoke in for a few seconds. God, he needed this particular cigarette after the night he was having. He stretched his legs out from their crossed position on the floor, propping his booted feet up on the low table and leaning more comfortably into the arm chair he was trying to relax in. It was a very comfy chair and definitely made him want to take a nice, long nap, but it was difficult to do so with Akira's annoying banging resonating in his head.

That girl...she was more trouble than she was worth. Yagari had half a mind to send her right back to Ireland after her stunt a short hour ago. What kind of Hunter hesitated in killing a vampire? Especially one that had obviously been targeting civilians? She was lucky he had been the only Hunter present as she interrogated the target and that he was lenient with her since he had grown somewhat fond of her. He hated to think of what would've happened to her had it been Anna or Imura that had seen what she had tried doing. The consequences would've been so much worse compared to him locking her in the bathroom for a few hours.

_"He wasn't even a Level E yet!"_

Yagari sighed, choking slightly on cigarette smoke as he did so. He didn't know what to do with that girl. Not even a half a day into the mission and she was already causing problems. They both had jobs to do and Yagari didn't have the time to babysit the kid, and he certainly didn't want to finish all of her assignments for her just because she was too busy talking to her target.

"She still doesn't understand Hunter rules," He muttered to himself around his cancer stick, eyebrows furrowing. Hadn't she told him she'd only been a Hunter for a couple years? That was still enough time to come to terms with Hunter rules and accept that not all targets were technically Level E's, right? She should be desensitized to the idea of killing vampires. Even those that weren't fully Level E. Just what the hell were the Hunters stationed in Ireland actually teaching those that were qualified to hunt? He roughly ran a hand through his messy hair in agitation and glared at the door that held the current bane of his existence. Her constant bangs and shouts were still heard through the door, completely oblivious to his glare.

Why the hell was he even saddled with her? He knew that he had been named as the current best Hunter at the Association, but did that really entitle him to _baby-sitting _as part of the title? He could name at least three other people she could've gone to instead of himself. Was the Association hoping he'd pass on his teachings to her as time went on after his last apprentice was forced to leave with his foster father? He snorted and shook his head. No. He didn't think they'd go that far. Corrupt they may be, but stupid they weren't. They would've only had to ask him to train her and he'd be forced to do so whether he liked it or not. Zero had been an exception. Ichiru, too. He'd been lucky to know people as prominent and well-known as the Kiryu's for such a long period of time.

_So what exactly was the President planning when he assigned him to look after Kobayashi Akira? _

A dangerously loud crash followed by a shouted expletive sounded from the bathroom and Yagari gave into the urge to groan. His night just kept getting better and better.

"That's another fifty cents!" He said over his shoulder, knowing the girl could hear him. He imagined that she was flipping him off angrily from behind the door and chuckled softly, rolling his shoulders to crack the stiff joints before commenting, "You know that destroying stuff isn't going to make me open that door."

He heard a snarl and she kicked at the door, hissing when the door didn't even dent. "This is ridiculous, Yagari!" She shouted from inside the bathroom. "You can't hole me up in here all night! You know I'll get out one way or another!"

"Consider this your punishment for jeopardizing a mission."

"How was I putting the mission at risk?!" She demanded. "I was trying to get information on our vampire's whereabouts!"

"You left a civilian wide open, Akira," Yagari said gruffly, flicking off access ash into a nearby ash tray he had managed to find. "Another vampire could've been attracted to her blood and he would've gotten away with her before you even noticed she was missing."

He heard a light thump hit the door. "That's your only excuse? I had my eye on her! I was just—"

"Too busy realizing that the vampire before you wasn't a complete Level E yet and not paying attention to anything else," He interjected before she could finish. "The point of the matter here is that you got distracted by something and that could've gotten you or that woman killed. For all you knew, the vampire causing all the real trouble could've been lurking by and you'd be dead before you could even blink if he deemed you a threat."

When Akira remained silent for longer than Yagari thought necessary, he felt worry begin to worm its way into his gut and he was about to get up to go and see what she was up to, but stopped mid-rise when he heard shifting and the door creaked as weight was pressed against it. "What did you do with that woman?" She asked, her voice subdued and muffled now. Yagari sat back down and released a breath, crushing the rest of his cigarette in the ash tray beside him.

"I had an acquaintance in town that took her off my hands," He said vaguely. "He knows someone that can erase her memories of tonight and get her back to her home before she wakes."

"She won't be changed?"

Yagari scoffed, knowing instantly what she was asking and feeling mildly insulted at the girl's lack of common sense. What a stupid question. "You know that Purebloods are the only ones that can change humans into vampires."

"I can't be sure?" She bit out sarcastically, her voice gaining strength. He heard her moving again and figured that she was trying to get comfortable. He thought he had heard Akira's version of a cackle for a split second, but ignored it in favor of slumping in his chair. "I've only ever killed a couple vampires. I don't know how things work here yet."

"You should," He commented, fingers twitching. Did he want another cigarette or did he want to save the ones he had left? And what the hell was that clicking sound? He ran a hand down his face the second he figured it out.

The bathroom door swung open sharply and Akira was crouched proudly on the ground, smirking victoriously. She easily got to her feet and waved one of the few bobby pins she kept in her hair at him tauntingly. "Told you I'd get out of there sooner or later." He actually rolled his eyes this time, hand already reaching into his pocket for another cigarette. Morning couldn't come any faster.

**.**

**. .**

**. . .**

_"Stay here and do not, under any circumstance, leave this room. Clean up your mess while I'm gone. I don't want to find a single shard of glass on that floor."_

Yagari must not have liked the little present I left him. Why else would he lock me in my room and ban me from any hunting for the next few days? But then Yagari didn't really need any other reason other than that he was my superior to forbid me from doing anything. I pouted pathetically on my bed, staring at the ceiling in complete and utter boredom. I did feel guilty, though. I mean, I hadn't meant to _shatter _the bathroom mirror in my fit of rage. I had just...overreacted, I guess...

"Then again, he does have to pay the manager all the money necessary to replace it," I mumbled thoughtfully. I glanced in the bathroom's direction, eying the pieces of glass visible on the tile floor and contemplating whether I should get up now to clean it up or simply do it later. Yea, no. I flopped backwards onto my back, yawning. It was too far. Laziness was setting in again. I'd do it later when I thought it would be closer to the time it would take for Yagari to come back from wherever it was that he had went. Stupid man wouldn't tell me where it was that he was going, so I was left completely in the dark. Again.

I puffed out my cheeks in mock anger at the thought of the older Hunter and turned onto my side, arching my back to relieve the tension and sighing when it cracked pleasantly. For about a whole minute, I was satisfied and relaxed, pushing away all thoughts of Yagari and this mission away for a few seconds. And then boredom reared its ugly head. I sighed heavily. I was going to die of boredom before Yagari even came back. My thoughts took a sudden turn when that Level D-almost-Level E popped into my head. _Red eyes. Matted hair. A feral, almost crazed, look on his face._

_There was a sudden scream that pierced the air. It was so shrill and high that nearby birds instantly took flight. A blur of black and white. A body hit the ground in the next second, feminine limbs splayed out painfully. She didn't move. A man's voice sounded, followed by a woman's, as they started to pursue the enemy. They both took notice of the child huddled by the dead woman's body at the same time. Short blond hair was absolutely covered in blood and dirt and the child was shivering from both the cold and fear. Disheveled bangs parted to—_

I sat up sharply, shaking my head rapidly as if it would clear the image away. I slapped my cheeks for good measure, wincing at the sting I had left behind and took a deep breath. Okay, let's just think of something not so dangerous. My mind slowly wandered away from the vampire and onto my family. I slowly lowered my hands down to my lap and gazed emptily at the floor.

Strange how now of all times that I'm starting to feel homesick. I haven't thought about home since I first arrived here in Japan a few months ago. I kinda wondered how Mom and Dad were doing. Was my little sister about start her training to become a Hunter, too? What was my older brother doing right now at college? Was he having the time of his life like he promised us he would? Were they all _okay_?

I sighed, holding my face in my hands as I slouched over. I had too many questions running through my head and not a single one of them would be answered anytime soon. It was at times like this that I really hated my decision to not get a phone before I left Ireland. Though, to be honest, it probably would've have lasted very long with me. I break things way too easily and a phone is just too much responsibility. I admit to not being the most responsible person ever, but I knew that it would just be a huge waste of money to buy something that would be destroyed some weeks later by some unfortunate accident.

I got to my feet, looking around for something to do. Realizing that the curtains were still wide open, I walked over and looked outside. It was pitch black outside with the exception of the street lamps that were evenly spaced along both sides of the road. I closed the curtains, fiddling with the soft fabric in between my fingers absently as I stood there.

I wondered for the hundredth time where it was that Yagari could've possibly gone at this time. The digital clock beside the bed read that it was barely past five in the morning. A yawn escaped me and I rubbed the corners of my eyes tiredly before shaking my head. I couldn't fall asleep now. I needed to stay awake so that I can question Yagari when he comes back.

_IF he comes back. _

My lips pulled up into a scowl at the inner snide thought. That stupid man wouldn't leave me here by myself. He knew just what kind of damage I could cause if I was left by myself. The blame would be pinned on him the second something happened, anyway, because many of the hotel staff and patrons have seen us together since we arrived. Plus he paid with his card, so the staff know who to find should something happen.

_So? Is that really all that is stopping him? _

Doubt began to well up in my gut. Technically, Yagari wasn't _obligated _to pay for stuff that I broke. He may be my guardian during the time that I am here for this mission, but I knew that didn't necessarily mean that he had to take care of me. Mom had made sure that I would be well stocked for a long period of time while I was in Japan. And I knew that Dad had put a lot of extra money into my bank when he thought I wasn't paying attention. I could totally fend for myself while I was here.

"The only problem is that the Association thinks I need Yagari around 24/7 to keep myself out of trouble," I grumbled unhappily at the realization, crossing my arms and glaring at nothing. "Stupid bastards. I can look after myself just fine. It's not my fault that trouble always seems to follow me around!"

Seething, I childishly threw a slipper that happened to be by my foot. My eyes widened when it sailed through the air and knocked over a plain looking vase that had been resting near the door on a stand. I cringed when it fell to the floor and shattered into pieces. Damn, I really do have shit aim.

"Yagari is gonna kill me this time," I groaned, grabbing the broom that was in the small storage closet on the other side of the room. I desperately hoped that Yagari would be gone for at least another hour. I hissed when glass stabbed at my feet and picked out the small piece that had gotten stuck in my skin. A dot of blood began to well up to the surface. I sighed and reluctantly started sweeping up the vase pieces that littered the floor.

This really sucks...

**. **

**. .**

**. . .**

"You wanna explain to me why it is that you're limping?" Yagari inquired, eyebrow arched expectantly at me as we speed-walked through town. People ducked around Yagari's tall imposing form, completely avoiding my short form as I hurried to keep up with his long strides. Seriously, the man should slow down. He is in way too much of a hurry when it was barely seven o'clock.

I firmed my lips and refused to meet his eyes, struggling to keep the limp out of my fast gait. Weariness bore down on me, my eyes feeling unbelievably heavy and my legs being very uncooperative. It didn't help that the bandages that I had wrapped around my feet were beginning to unwind once more. I was a shit medic and had done a rather pathetic job of bandaging my feet after I had stepped on countless pieces of glass earlier this morning when I was cleaning up the aftermath of two separate temper tantrums. Sharp stings of pain crawled up my leg from the bottom of both my feet and I gritted my teeth to ignore the nausea that began swirling in my stomach.

_Oh God, getting sick now of all times would be the worst misfortune I'd have to face today. _

"I'm not limping," I lied through my teeth, staring straight ahead. People dodged around my form, eyes following us as we stalked by. I glared at a particular stranger that actually stopped in place to stare at us with wary eyes. He paled at the dark look I sent him and hurried back down the sidewalk. My eye twitched and I quickly changed the subject by asking, "Where are we going, Yagari? You dragged me out of my room at a horrible hour to go for a walk?" I laid the sarcasm on thick, my irritated mood slipping through with the sneer that was on my lips.

Yagari gave me a look that clearly told me to lose the attitude I was giving him. I scowled at the sidewalk, snarling at a woman that bumped into my shoulder. She gave me an offended look before disappearing into the crowd. I rolled said shoulder and sighed at the harsh crack that came from it. Taking a deep breath, I thought of calm, soothing thoughts before asking Yagari again in a nicer voice, "Where is it that we're going?"

Pleased that I had reigned in my raging temper, Yagari replied, "We are going to visit an old friend today. There are some things that need to be cleared up."

"Cleared up? Is this friend accused of some kind of crime?"

Yagari shook his head negative. "Our visiting him has nothing to do with the Association or the orders we were given. I have some questions that need answering and if he has these answers, then our mission will be immensely easy for the next few months."

I furrowed my eyebrows. He was telling the truth, I could hear the honesty in his voice, but I couldn't shake off the feeling that he was hiding something from me. But why would Yagari keep something from me? He knew how hiding information from partners could be disastrous. It was practically law at the Association to keep everyone in the loop of everything that was going on during a mission.

"You're hiding something from me," I accused quietly, watching him closely. His eyes never wavered and his body didn't tense up in the least. _Damn it. _

"I am not," He replied easily, ice blue eyes locking with peridot ones. Sincerity was crystal clear in his eyes without a single sliver of doubt present. I faltered, looking away from his piercing gaze. I couldn't shake off the feeling that he was still hiding something. I knew that he was being honest and sincere with me, but my gut kept nagging, telling me that something was off with the older Hunter. I decided to let it go for now.

_I really hope it's just me being paranoid again._

A chilly breeze blew by, making my long hair snap out behind me in dark waves. Exhaling in surprise at the bitter coldness, I tugged my trench coat—which just so happened to be an exact copy of Yagari's—closer to my body for warmth, thankful that I had brought it along with me out of force of habit. It was only late August, but it already felt like it was winter.

Taking notice of my surroundings, I realized that we were close to leaving town. There were barely any people around anymore now that we had left the busiest section of the square. Yagari brushed past me to take the lead, confusing me. "Where are we meeting this friend of yours?" I asked, freezing to a stop when Yagari slowed before a plain black car that rolled to a stop at the end of the sidewalk. My eye twitched in disbelief. "What, no limo today?"

A head slap was my answer.

"Get in the car, brat," Yagari said, already climbing in. "You'll just have to wait until we get there."

Rolling my eyes, I sat beside him and shut the door as the car began to cruise along down the road, avoiding pedestrians that were up and about at this ungodly hour. The sky was still a dark navy blue with blinking stars still visible in the sky. A strip of land to the East was beginning to turn red, signalling that the sun was going to be rising above the horizon soon.

We drove in silence for the majority of the ride, Yagari stretched out comfortably beside me with his hat over his eyes and gun still slung over his shoulder and me resting my head against the window, watching the trees and green plains zip past along with the random house. We had just left the town's outskirts and were about to venture into the country from the looks of it.

I jumped when my stomach gave an angry rumble. I placed a hand over my stomach as if having contact over it would make the rumbling stop. I mentally cursed the fact that I hadn't bothered to eat dinner last night or breakfast this morning before we left. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Yagari reaching into his trench coat pocket and threw a granola bar onto my lap. Thanking him, I tore off the wrapper and bit into the tasteless food. I crumpled the wrapper up and shoved it into my pocket, mindlessly chewing my food.

Another ten minutes probably passed before I realized that the car was slowing down. Looking out the window, a tall, graceful spire was becoming visible over the trees. Said spire slowly began to grow into an equally large structure that seemed to spread out more and more the closer we got to it. Confused, I looked to Yagari to question him if this was where we were heading, but stopped when I saw the look on his face. A look of slight dread and reluctance. For some reason, his look made me nervous and I reached into my pocket to palm the silver, anti-vampire weapon. The cool silver metal reassured me.

We stopped before a large wrought iron gate. Getting out first, I waited for Yagari to get out before following him. The gates before us opened smoothly when we were about a foot away from it. I noticed a person standing on the other side and slowed down, wary. A push from Yagari kept me moving forward.

The man was definitely handsome, even by our current society's definition of handsome. He wasn't burly and obnoxiously muscular, but rather lean and somewhat lanky in my opinion. He wore a scarf that was the same shade as my eyes, a plain white shirt, slacks, and _lion slippers. _I did a double take. Nope. My eyes weren't misleading me. Blond hair was pulled back into a low ponytail and hazel eyes seemed to almost _sparkle _when they caught our gazes. I blanched when the man actually tried _skipping _towards us.

"Yagari~!" He called in a sing-song voice, purposefully pitching his voice higher than normal. "Long time no see!" He then proceeded to launch himself at us. I let out a screech and immediately lashed out, raising my leg and drop-kicking the man straight into the ground at my feet. A dust cloud erupted into the air from where my foot connected with his head and crushed him into the ground. I coughed, backing away from the man and taking cover behind Yagari.

Said man sighed, rubbing his face. He looked exasperated. "What the hell, Yagari?!" I exclaimed, pointing dramatically at the man still lying face-down on the ground. He was twitching rather violently. "Who the hell is this guy?!"

Just what kind of friends did Yagari have?! This guy literally just flat out tried to tackle hug him! Any sane person would know that Yagari hated any kind of physical contact unless it involved a mock fight or an actual fight! And even if a person didn't know who Yagari was, the intimidating look he always had on his face would give away that he wasn't a touchy-feely person.

Yagari pulled his hat down over his forehead so that his eyes were covered. "That, Akira, would happen to be the Chairman of this Academy, which just so happens to be called _Cross_ Academy." He put slight emphasis on "Cross".

It felt like a rock had just dropped into my stomach. My blood went cold. "Cross?" I choked out.

I couldn't miss the slight smirk that appeared on Yagari's face. He was enjoying my brief moment of disbelief and horror! The bastard! "Yep. Akira, I'd like to introduce you to the one and only Kaien Cross."

**. . .**

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**.**

**Sorry for the long wait! School is currently kicking my ass. I'm actually making an effort this year since I need to pass a few certain classes that are required that I pass if I want to graduate. AP Psychology is currently winning the game of making me fail a class. **

**Thanks for reading! Have a great day/night, everyone! :) **

**-KalafinaJ **


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